


With Their Eyes All Aglow

by katayla



Category: Women of the Otherworld - Kelley Armstrong
Genre: F/M, Gen, Yuletide 2010
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-18
Updated: 2010-12-18
Packaged: 2017-10-13 18:02:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/140132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katayla/pseuds/katayla
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Christmas with the Pack. Set the Christmas before <i>Frostbitten</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	With Their Eyes All Aglow

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Niamh_St_George](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Niamh_St_George/gifts).



> Thank you to my betas!

"Merry Christmas, darling."

Clay grinned at me from his pillow and I remembered Christmas after Christmas. The first one we had together, my first real Christmas, when he did his best to make everything perfect, when he _did_ make everything perfect. The first one with the Pack, when they banded together to create something just for me. And the last two years with the twins. I used to dream of Christmases like these, with a family of my own.

"I love you."

Clay's eyes widened at my words. It wasn't new knowledge, was far from the first time I'd said it, but hearing the words always meant something to him. I counted it as my first present to him.

He leaned over to grab me and I rolled out of reach. He growled and pounced. I laughed and let him catch me. He lowered his head and kissed me, hands sliding behind my head and bringing me closer. But before we could get any further, we heard the sound of tiny feet running down the hall. The sound was soon followed by two tiny bodies jumping on the bed.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Kate bounced up and down. "It's Christmas!"

Logan didn't say anything, but his eyes shone as bright as his sister's.

"Come on!" Kate said. "Presents!"

And she jumped a little too close to Clay, who scooped her up in his arms. She squealed in happiness as he swung off the bed with her, grabbing Logan on the way.

"Did Santa visit?" Logan asked, his eyes a little worried. Someone—I suspected Savannah—had told him and Kate that Santa wouldn't come if they weren't good enough.

"Better go down and see!" Clay said and headed for the door, one twin under each arm.

I followed close behind. Clay'd argued about teaching them about Santa at all. He said he didn't want to lie to our children. But I told him it was all part of the holidays and, besides, someday we'd have to sit down and explain to them about the supernatural world, so Santa was a way of easing them into that.

At which point he became more gung-ho than me about the idea. He looked for any sign of the wolf in Kate and Logan, and so took their eager embrace of Santa as an indication that they had some sense of the supernatural world. I had a feeling it had more to do with the idea of presents. Despite my best intentions, they were already somewhat spoiled by the Pack and all too familiar with the concept of gifts.

Of course, Santa _had_ visited. I heard Logan's gasp when he saw the presents spilling out from under the tree. Kate immediately started kicking and yelling, "Let me down!" Clay did so and she rushed to the tree. Logan followed at a more sedate pace.

"No opening presents yet!" I said. Kate frowned and sat on the floor, but Logan picked up one present at a time, and shook and felt each one with careful consideration.

They _were_ spoiled. Jeremy started buying them presents in July. I think he spent one entire day doing nothing but online shopping. Kate, as usual, took notice of everything and she and Logan pounced on the boxes as soon as they arrived. Clay wasn't much help. He said they should get to open them as a reward for their observation skills. After that, Jeremy sent the boxes to Nick and Antonio.

Which isn't to say Clay and I were much more prudent when it came to our Christmas shopping. Clay bought them stuffed animals (for "practice") and science kits and books that were entirely too old for them. I tried to buy them more appropriate children's toys, but what did I know about that? The only Christmas presents I could remember as a child were sensible gifts. Underwear. A coat. Maybe a candy cane, if my foster parents felt guilty enough.

And then, of course, the rest of the Pack brought them presents. Even Karl followed protocol there and Hope assured me that none of his gifts were stolen.

"Merry Christmas!" Jeremy said, as he entered the room. Normally the twins attacked him with hugs in the morning, but they were so enthralled by the tree that they barely noticed his arrival.

Jamie—who had followed him—laughed. "You going to let them open those anytime soon?"

"They can wait for the others," Clay said.

Which didn't take long. I knew the twins would wake the Pack, but I winced when Paige and Lucas appeared. They must have been louder than I realized.

"Sorry," I said.

Paige smiled. "It's okay. I like seeing children on Christmas Day. I miss that part of the Coven."

Savannah was the last to arrive. She clunk down the stairs and sunk into a chair.

As soon as Kate noticed her, she ran over to me and Clay. "Presents now?"

Clay swung her back into his arms. "Let's see if we can find anything for you under the tree."

Logan tugged on his hand. "Me too?"

"You too." And up went Logan.

I smiled as I watched Clay crawl under the tree and retrieve presents for the twins. I think he enjoyed making Christmas special for them even more than he did for me.

"Gorgeous tree," Lucas remarked. Its tip brushed the ceiling and it was overloaded with ornaments, including many made by Kate and Logan. Kate took the prize for quantity, while Logan concentrated on quality. His were careful constructions, while hers were more haphazard, but also more colorful.

We'd chopped down the tree early in the month. Clay, Jeremy, Nick and I made an entire production of it. We put hot chocolate in thermoses, bundled the twins up and took them into the woods. The woods were already fairly familiar to them. None of us were entirely sure how the werewolf genes would manifest in Logan and Kate, but they already showed an affinity for the forest.

Kate ran from tree to tree, screaming "this one!", while Logan examined them more carefully. He shook his head at each of her choices, but Kate was undeterred. By the time the twins agreed on a tree, I think we were all exhausted. Kate wanted to use the axe and Clay let her and Logan take turns holding the end of it. We dragged the tree back to Stonehaven, the twins each clinging proudly to a branch.

"Do you think they'll remember this?" I asked Paige and Lucas, as the twins tore through their presents. Well, as Kate tore and Logan removed the wrapping carefully. I wished so badly that I remembered my early Christmases. The few memories I had of my parents were good. I must have had good Christmases with them.

"They're young," Lucas said. "And, though the exact ramifications of their werewolf genes aren't known, their memories should correspond to human memories, which—"

Paige jabbed him in the side.

Lucas pushed his glasses up his nose. "That is to say, even if they don't have specific memories, they'll be shaped by events like this one. They'll know you love them."

If it wasn't entirely what I wanted to hear, at least it was an honest answer. I smiled at them and went to the twins.

"Mommy, mommy! Look!" Kate crawled all over me. She had a toy bow-and-arrow in one hand and a stuffed wolf in the other. Judging by Clay's glare, the wolf came from Savannah. And I knew Jeremy had given her the bow-and-arrow. He had some ideas about easing them into our way of life.

"Mom, look!" And now Logan stood in front of me. Even my quiet twin had gotten wrapped up in the excitement of Christmas. He held a microscope in his hands. A toy one, but one that worked. Clay had insisted on that.

I admired their gifts and then they dove into the pile for more. Clay sat down next to me and pulled me into his lap.

"There may be something under there for you, too," I said, and nodded at the tree.

"Yeah? Might have gotten you a thing or two."

I leaned back against him and smiled. Maybe the twins wouldn't remember this Christmas, but I resolved to memorize every second of it. I could still remember how desperately I longed for a traditional family. To make for myself what I'd lacked. Husband. Children. I'd never imagined anything like the Pack. Never imagined friendships with people like Lucas and Paige.

Kate and Logan had opened the rest of their presents and the adults finally ventured near the tree. Nick almost acting like a child himself, read names on packages and tossed them at people. I ignored the pile growing at our feet and twisted my arms around Clay's neck.

"Thank you," I said.

"What for?"

"For bringing Christmas to the Pack."

Clay's eyes gleamed. "You're the one who did that."

I leaned forward and kissed him. I'd meant so much more than that. Thank you for the Pack. Thank you for the children. Clay's arms wrapped around me, bringing me closer, but before we could get too involved, Kate and Logan tugged on our arms.

"You have to open them!" Kate explained, and pointed toward our stack of gifts.

And, so, with a twin in each of our laps, and surrounded by our family and friends, Clay and I opened our presents.


End file.
